Xbox LIVE Artist of the Month Program

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Artist of the Month:

Circo

Published July 1, 2008

Their name is short, to the point, and impossible to forget: the same way the band's four members make some of the Spanish world's most innovative music. Circo's latest album, Cursi ("Campy"), is their first for Sony BMG, and it has already taken the music world by storm.

The band Circo.

Circo is led by its master of ceremonies, lead singer José Luis Abreu ("Fofé") who provides vocals for the musicianship of Edgardo "Egui" Santiago (keyboard, accordion, melodica, and electric guitar), José David Pérez (drums and vibraphone), and Orlando "Orly" Méndez (guitar).

Fofé originally appeared in the band El Manjar de los Dioses (The Food of the Gods), and cut two albums with them before the band fell apart. He then recruited David and Egui, former members of El Manjar, and together they joined forces in a new adventure: the creation of Circo in 2001.

Their first album No Todo Lo Que Es Pop Es Bueno (Not Everything That Is Pop Is Good) was followed up by 2005's En El Cielo De Tu Boca (In The Roof Of Your Mouth). The band then decided to start over again and look for a new record label. They found Sony BMG and released Cursi in September of 2007.

Circo is José Luis Abreu, Edgardo Santiago, José David Pérez, and Orlando Méndez.

"The albums show how the group has evolved on a musical level," explains Fofé enthusiastically. "It is called Cursi because I wanted to explore the theme of love explicitly with all its rejections and seductions. I don't mean to say that there won't be any metaphors, but it is more direct, in a style that I had not explored previously. There are stories here, but the record is pretty danceable and radio-friendly. All our songs are an invitation to dance and to celebrate feelings."

Circo is the first and only Puerto Rican rock band to have received multiple Latin Grammy nominations, with two nominations in 2002 and two in 2005.

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